Jackson County, Mississippi


Jackson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Mississippi. As of the 2020 census, the population was 143,252, making it the fifth-most populous county in Mississippi. Its county seat is Pascagoula. The county was named for Andrew Jackson, general in the United States Army and afterward President of the United States. Jackson County is included in the Pascagoula, MS Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is located at the southeastern tip of the state. The county has sandy soil and is in the Piney Woods area. It borders the state of Alabama on its east side. The county was severely damaged by both Hurricane Camille in August 1969 and Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005, which caused catastrophic effects.
The county bears no relation with the state capital of Jackson, which is one of the two county seats of Hinds County, along with the city of Raymond.
WWW co.jackson.ms.us

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of, of which is land and is water. It is the largest county in Mississippi by total area.

Major highways

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Adjacent counties

National protected areas

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 143,252. The median age was 39.9 years. 23.4% of residents were under the age of 18 and 16.7% of residents were 65 years of age or older. For every 100 females there were 95.3 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 92.4 males age 18 and over.
The racial makeup of the county was 66.1% White, 21.0% Black or African American, 0.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 2.2% Asian, 0.1% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 3.3% from some other race, and 6.7% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 7.0% of the population.
69.7% of residents lived in urban areas, while 30.3% lived in rural areas.

Households and housing

There were 55,677 households in the county, of which 32.8% had children under the age of 18 living in them. Of all households, 45.5% were married-couple households, 18.7% were households with a male householder and no spouse or partner present, and 29.2% were households with a female householder and no spouse or partner present. About 26.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 10.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.
There were 62,190 housing units, of which 10.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 69.3% were owner-occupied and 30.7% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.9% and the rental vacancy rate was 13.2%.

Choctaw people

Jackson County is home to the Vancleave Live Oak Choctaw, which the State of Mississippi, through House Resolution 50, ceremonially recognized as "The Official Native American Tribe of the Choctaw People of Jackson County, Mississippi" in 2016. This legislative action acknowledges the tribe's historical and cultural significance in the state. While locally acknowledged, the tribe is not federally recognized as a Native American tribe.

Public safety

The Jackson County Sheriff's Office provides law enforcement services for communities in the county that do not have their own local law enforcement. These communities are known as Census-Designated Places, or CDPs.

Education

School districts in the county include:
The Jackson County School District serves the Hurley, Wade, Big Point, Three Rivers, Harleston, Vestry, Latimer, and Vancleave communities, along with St. Martin and a small portion of Escatawpa. The Pascagoula-Gautier School District serves Pascagoula and most of the City of Gautier. The Moss Point School District serves Moss Point and most of Escatawpa. The Ocean Springs School District serves Ocean Springs.

Communities

Cities

Census-designated places

Unincorporated places

Ghost towns

Former census-designated places

Politics

Like most of the Solid South, Jackson County consistently voted for the Democratic presidential candidate through 1960, except for 1948, when it was carried by Dixiecrat Strom Thurmond. For much of this time, Republicans were lucky to get even 1,000 votes. It voted overwhelmingly for Republican Barry Goldwater in 1964, voted for George Wallace in 1968 over Republican Richard Nixon, and has stuck with Republicans ever since. Jimmy Carter is the last Democrat to manage 40 percent of the vote.